


you look familiar

by milktxt



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Actor!Jeonghan, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Actors, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Eventual Romance, If You Squint - Freeform, Jeonhan isn't really nice in this, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pining, Pining Seungcheol, Rating May Change, Slow Burn, Waiter!Seungcheol, jigyu - Freeform, no heavy angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-09
Updated: 2018-02-09
Packaged: 2019-03-15 20:48:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,689
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13621392
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/milktxt/pseuds/milktxt
Summary: “I don’t know who he is. I mean, whenever I ask, he just disappears into thin air and he looks so sad, guys - like he’s disappointed in me. And then I just keep falling and falling until I wake up? And then the second I’m awake, my heart aches and I feel like I failed him. BUT I DON’T EVEN KNOW HIM.”Soulmates see each other in their dreams. Seungcheol's been dreaming of Jeonghan for a year now, but the latter doesn't seem to really care.





	you look familiar

Seungcheol’s dream belongs in a romantic drama set. It’s tragic, over the top, and borderline cheesy but it never fails to shake him to the core every time he wakes up. It feels like an abrupt landing and then there’s this fleeting moment where he needs to get a hold of himself, assess the situation and remember where he is. It’s been a year now and yet, he’s never gotten used to the feeling of waking up in a cold sweat every time they part.

“Who are you?” is always Seungcheol’s last sentence before the man disappears, chagrin taking over his face. Seungcheol feels like he’s missing a part of the puzzle. This whole “soulmates see each other in their dreams” idea doesn’t work like that. He isn’t supposed to wake up feeling empty, like his heart has been torn out of his chest in the process of waking up. 

Seungcheol wants to hate whoever that soulmate is but the second he closes his eyes and he’s faced with the man’s soft and warm features, he feels nothing but genuine fascination. He’s reaching out to Seungcheol; he’s looking at him with those tender, honey dripping eyes; he’s holding his hand and then he’s speaking. 

His voice is faint, slightly shaking when he talks. Seungcheol hears those same words every single night. “Promise me you’ll never leave me. Please…”

-

He tells his roommates about his dreams over overcooked eggs and instant coffee on a lazy Sunday morning. Wonwoo is silently reading his book while sipping on his drink - black like his soul, he says. Mingyu’s sitting right next to him, facing Seungcheol. He’s barely awake, his sleepy eyes are boring holes into Seungcheol’s t-shirt, his hair is tousled messily on top of his head and his “coffee” is a light cream color.

“I need to talk to you about something, guys.” He announces, his eyes never leave his mug - the pink one that says “world’s okayest roommate”, courtesy of Kim Mingyu. 

He’s met with two pairs of questioning eyes as Seungcheol speaks in great detail of his so-called soulmate. 

“I don’t know who he is. I mean, whenever I ask, he just disappears into thin air and he looks so sad, guys - like he’s disappointed in me. And then I just keep falling and falling until I wake up? And then the second I’m awake, my heart aches and I feel like I’ve failed him. BUT I DON’T EVEN KNOW HIM.” Seungcheol stopped trying to make sense of his words.

“It must be different from one person to another? Don’t beat yourself up over this.” Wonwoo swiftly dismisses his worries, basically telling him that he’s overthinking it and that he should take it easy. He gives Seungcheol a quick sympathetic glance before going back to his breakfast and pouring himself what Seungcheol believes is his third cup of coffee.

And then there’s Mingyu.

“Dude, no offense but you sound like the tragic main character of a drama, who’s fallen in love with a figment of his imagination. You should get laid, celibacy is starting to make you crazy!” He cackles like the idiot he is, and he looks very much awake now. He’s probably never going to let Seungcheol live it down. 

Wonwoo whacks him in the head with the back of his book, but Seungcheol still catches the amused sneer he makes at the comment. Mingyu, of course, is more than ready to reiterate and slap Wonwoo’s shoulder, and soon, they’re both bickering back and forth, Seungcheol’s worries completely forgotten by the two of them. 

“Guys, come on…” Seungcheol sighs. His two roommates reluctantly stop their quarrel. “I’m pretty sure these soulmates dreams aren’t supposed to be painful. I mean, take a look at Mingyu. The first time he dreamt of Jihoon, he spent the entire day gloating to himself like a dumbass.”

Wonwoo snorts out his coffee, he probably remembers it very well, too. Mingyu had been insufferable back then. Mingyu lets out an offended “hey!” in protest but doesn’t really push the matter on any further.

“Maybe your soulmate is a tortured soul? And you’re on a quest to save him from his demons?” 

“Or maybe he’s dead?” Both heads simultaneously turn to Mingyu. “Hey, I was just speculating!”

“In any way, you shouldn’t dwell on the matter. It’s probably not half as bad as you think.”

-

Seungcheol’s biggest aspiration in life is to act. He’s played many minor roles, been a cameo many times in smaller television shows but he’s never really gotten any opportunities bigger than those. However Seungcheol, optimistic that he is, still holds onto the belief that he’ll hit it big one day; if not for his innate talent in acting - the claim never fails to make Mingyu laugh-, it’ll be at least for his face. Unfortunately, the only thing his face has gotten him so far is his job as a waiter in one of those upscale restaurants downtown. 

At 24, Seungcheol is the only one in his friends group that’s still not kick started his career. 

Saturday night is always crowded, and as much as Seungcheol hates it, it’s also the night that brings in the most tips, and god knows how much he needs those. 

Seungcheol is endlessly running around tables, taking orders, pouring drinks, bringing in dishes under the scrutiny of his manager, a middle aged woman who might as well be the owner. Her eyes are dark and severe as they follow him around the establishment and Seungcheol wonders if her head hurts from how tight her high bun looks. Her arms are folded across her chest as she beckons him towards her with a quick hand movement.

“We have very important clients tonight and I need you to be at their service for the evening.” She orders. It’s not the first time that Seungcheol has to wait on important people, but the pinched look on his manager’s face tells him these people aren’t just your friendly neighborhood millionaires. 

“I’m sure you’ve heard of the up-and-coming movie star Yoon Jeonghan.” He hasn’t, but he nods nonetheless. “Well, he’s here tonight with his new directors team for a business meeting. I need everything to be flawless and you have to make sure they’re taken care of to the best of your ability.”

“Understood.”

She points out a table by the window, in the far right corner of the restaurant. Seungcheol can’t make out each person, but he can discern the four silhouettes agitatedly chatting. He grabs four menus and walks towards them. He tries to catch bits of conversation as he makes his way to the table but the voices are muffled by the restaurant’s music and the sounds of other customers in the background.

There’s this feeling of unease that settles deep in Seungcheol’s gut and he doesn’t really understand why. He’s done that a thousand times, hell this has been his job for over two years now and yet, the closer he gets to the table, the more nauseous he feels. 

Seungcheol ignores the feeling and gets to work. He’s about to start reciting his usual mantra of “Hello, my name is Seungcheol and I’ll be your waiter for tonight,” when he sees him, uninterested eyes staring Seungcheol up and down. The man sitting right in front of him looks exactly like his dream. He has the same soft and glowy skin, the same dainty looking frame and he’s right here, looking back at Seungcheol with an eyebrow raised. 

He’s beautiful. He’s so beautiful that it’s almost unreal and Seungcheol has to fight the urge to hold his face between his hands and caress his cheeks. He stands still instead and everything he wants to say evaporates. His eyes are wide open in shock, probably the size of two saucers, he doesn’t know what to do with his hands and the only thing that comes out of his mouth is a choked “oh my god, it’s you.”

All three producers take offense in the waiter’s speech and lack of professionalism. Seungcheol couldn’t care less; especially when the object of his incessant dreams is here and it’s the only thing that matters to him - he must be Yoon Jeonghan, Seungcheol guesses.

Said object of Seungcheol’s fantasies snorts and he looks up at him, amused if anything. Seungcheol doesn’t understand what’s so funny about the situation. Jeonghan is his soulmate; he should be just as surprised to see him, he shouldn’t be sporting that constructed smile he probably gives all his admirers.

“Y-you! I dream of you every night!” He insists, a little too loudly and he must be making a scene. He can feel the weight of all the eyes that are on him. Seungcheol wouldn’t be surprised if all the customers were watching the scene; after all, his struggle must be so much more entertaining than their meals.

Yoon Jeonghan doesn’t budge. If anything, he gives Seungcheol a smile that’s every bit fabricated, his lips are stretched a little too wide to be comfortable and his eyes, the same eyes that drip honey in Seungcheol’s dream, look bored, almost inert. “Oh, that’s cute,” he sounds sickly sweet. “Thank you for your support.” He replies mechanically before going back to the menu that’s placed in front of him. 

It’s so frustrating. Seungcheol is upset. This isn’t the same man he’s been seeing in his dream. His soulmate wouldn’t act that way. The man he sees in his sleep is genuine and his emotions are always written on his face like an open book. That’s Seungcheol’s soulmate.

The next thing he does is completely out of instinct. He doesn’t catch the producers and their shocked expression nor does he care about his manager’s look of pure horror when he pulls Jeonghan’s arm and drags him to the bathroom. Jeonghan’s demand for Seungcheol to let go of his hand falls on deaf ears and soon, he finds himself locked in one of the stalls in the restaurant’s restroom.

“What the fuck?” Jeonghan looks at Seungcheol with alarm written all over his face and it’s upsetting that it’s the first genuine emotion Seungcheol sees tonight. He’s trying to get himself out of the confined space but Seungcheol’s stronger and it doesn’t take much to prevent Jeonghan from running away.

“Listen I’m really sorry, I wasn’t thinking. I just wanna talk.” He tries in an attempt to calm Jeonghan down. It doesn’t work.

“I’ve had fans try to pull stunts like this before.” Jeonghan threatens. “I’m more than ready to press charges.” 

Shit. 

“Please, please listen to me. I’m not your fan. Hell, it’s the first time I ever hear your name.” Seungcheol reasons. Jeonghan’s glare goes from angry to offended in less than a second. He fucked up.

“So? What’s this all about? I swear to god if you don’t give me a valid argument, I’m calling the police.”

Seungcheol is torn between wanting to call Jeonghan a jerk and wanting to apologize.

“I’ve been seeing you in my dreams-”

“Not this thing again, seriously.”

“No, I’m serious. Soulmates see each other in their dreams, that’s a known fact. You are I, we’re soulmates.” Seungcheol’s arms are practically flailing as he tries to make sense of his own words. It’s hard when Jeonghan is looking at him like he has just been told that the Earth is flat. 

“Yeah, no sweetheart, that’s just you. I have no soulmate, I don’t see people in my dreams, let alone you.” He finishes flatly, arms wrapped against his chest and he’s about to push Seungcheol away and leave. 

Except Seungcheol blocks the way again and it earns him a loud groan from Jeonghan. 

“I’m sorry but I can’t believe you.” 

“What now?” 

Jeonghan looks absolutely done with all of this, but he still leans against the stall wall, waiting for whatever bullshit Seungcheol might spit out next.

“You’ve been haunting my dreams for a year and I can’t let you leave like this. I need answers. I’ve been looking for you for too long. Why do I see you and you don’t? It’s not supposed to be that way. We’re supposed to be meant for each other!”

“And so you decide to believe that you’re destined to fall in love with a figment of your imagination? What next, are you gonna let a mere dream dictate your entire life, your relationships, your career? Wake up.”

Jeonghan doesn’t wait for him to answer to continue his rant. 

“Do you even know me to claim so confidently that you and I are made for each other and that we’re destined to fall in love?” There’s only one thing Seungcheol’s learned about Jeonghan in the fifteen minutes he’s known him for; it is that he does not sugar coat. Each and everyone of his words hit Seungcheol like a passing train. 

Seungcheol is still silent. 

“I’m obviously not your ‘quote unquote soulmate’, I’m too busy to bother with things as trivial as love. I have a career and you obviously only care about ‘fate’.” He wraps up his speech, finally. “Now if you’ll excuse me.” 

Jeonghan walks away from the stall and leaves an astounded Seungcheol behind, looking right where Jeonghan was standing only seconds ago. Seungcheol feels like he’s been slapped in the face multiple times then stabbed in the heart with a dull knife.

 

When Seungcheol leaves the bathroom, Jeonghan and his team are long gone and his manager’s tight bun is loosely hanging from her head, she’s in furies. Seungcheol wants to hide from the tornado that’s about to hit him but she catches him before he has time to look left and right for an escape.

“YOU!” 

The tongue lashing he gets is humiliating to say the least. He’ll probably get fired but at this very moment, there’s way too many things on Seungcheol’s mind and wondering how he’s going to find a new job is only the tip of the iceberg. His mind goes back to Jeonghan’s words. “ Are you gonna let a mere dream dictate your entire life, relationships, and career?”

His career… It makes Seungcheol laugh a little and he can see his manager’s state go from anger to pure rage. 

“You’re so lucky Mr. Yoon was nice enough to ask me to give you a second chance.” 

It snaps Seungcheol up from his reverie. Who does Yoon Jeonghan think he is? Seungcheol doesn’t need the help of a larger than life asshole, he can manage just fine by himself (he can’t).

-

The house is usually quiet when Seungcheol comes back from work and today is no exception. There’s a faint light coming from the kitchen and Seungcheol spots Wonwoo there, sitting by the counter, furiously typing god knows what on his laptop and he’s nursing a cup in his right hand - Seungcheol believes it’s green tea, or at least hopes it’s not coffee yet again.

“You look so much more tired than usual. Something wrong?” Wonwoo doesn’t look up from his laptop as he speaks, and Seungcheol has given up trying to understand his roommate a long time ago. 

“Just… Bad day at work. I’m gonna go to sleep.” 

“Is it something related to your dream again?” Touché. Wonwoo knows he’s right and he stops whatever typing he was doing to take a good look at Seungcheol, who’s still pitifully standing by the front door. 

“I met him.” 

“Your soulmate? That’s great!” Wonwoo cheers up at the sound of the news but his face slowly reverts back to stoicism when he notices Seungcheol’s frown, the way his arms just dangle into the air and the eye roll that nobody would notice if they weren’t Jeon Wonwoo.

“Yeah, no. I thought he’d be just as shocked but he didn’t recognize me; he didn’t dream of me and he thinks that the idea of soulmates is ridiculous. It’s very one sided. He doesn’t care to know who I am. He’s this,’ Seungcheol stops for a second to think of the perfect way to describe Jeonghan, “fake, pompous prick who thinks the world belongs to him.”

“Yikes.”

“His name is Yoon Jeonghan.”

Wonwoo chokes on his tea. 

“Wait, Yoon Jeonghan? THE Yoon Jeonghan?” There’s a mixture of shock and admiration on Wonwoo’s face. Seungcheol doesn’t understand why he’s the only person who’s never heard of Yoon Jeonghan before today. 

“I guess… I’ve never heard of him before, so.”

“He played the main character in this very popular movie that came out last year. I’m sure you’ve heard of it, it’s called ‘Don’t wanna cry.’” Seungcheol’s never heard of it. “He hit it big because he played an openly gay character. He has amazing facial expressions when acting.”

Seungcheol shrugs.

“Oh my god, Cheol. How badly did you fuck up?”

He inhales slowly and then exhales a large, drawn out groan. “I’m just… gonna go to sleep if you don’t mind.”

Wonwoo studies him for a few seconds, before motioning towards Seungcheol’s room. “Sure. Don’t let me hold you back, be my guest.”

 

For the first time this year, Seungcheol doesn’t dream of Jeonghan, of his inviting arms, warm eyes and soft voice. He doesn’t remember what his dream consisted of when he wakes up in the morning and it’s alarming. He’s more than disoriented when he leaves his bedroom and makes a beeline for the kitchen.

Jihoon is making breakfast, with a giddy Mingyu following him around like a lost puppy. Wonwoo is watching TV in the living room and they all look so unbothered, it’s unfair. Seungcheol is at war with himself.

The dreams stop completely. It’s been a week now and Seungcheol still goes to bed every night with the hope that the Jeonghan in his dreams will appear, hold his hand and tell him that everything will be alright. It never happens. 

-

The second time Seungcheol meets Yoon Jeonghan, it’s a month later at a convenience store near the restaurant. 

Seungcheol’s running an errand for his manager - something about running out of floor polish, his eyes are scanning the prices displayed on the shelves. The more expensive brand looks promising, but he’s on a budget, the other option is much cheaper and honestly, he usually leaves the cleaning to Mingyu so he doesn’t really know. 

He’s holding each bottle in one hand, as if holding them all the way up to the fluorescent lights of the store and glaring at them will help him decide better. He must look like a pure imbecile because he hears a snort behind him; it’s embarrassing. Seungcheol quickly gets rid of the expensive brand and puts the other bottle in his basket, then he turns around to look at the amused customer behind him.

As soon as he turns, his smile falters and his words die before they can escape his parted lips. Yoon Jeonghan doesn’t look very happy to see him either. He glares at Seungcheol, as if his mere existence was a nuisance. He looks great though. 

His hair is falling over his forehead, swaying left and right with each of Jeonghan’s movements. The clothes he’s wearing are much less formal than the ones he was wearing back at the restaurant and Seungcheol doesn’t understand how he can look dashing in a simple white tee shirt and a pair of tight black jeans. He looks so much like the version Seungcheol sees in his dreams, he can’t take it. 

Jeonghan’s about to leave, and Seungcheol wished he could just do the same but he misses his dream and Jeonghan is right here. Seungcheol is so weak.

“Wait!” He exclaims, a tad bit too loud and it earns him a scowl from Jeonghan. It still makes him stop in his tracks, though.

“What? Are you gonna cause a scene here too?”

“I just want to apologize.” 

“Apology accepted. Can I leave now?” Seungcheol almost forgot how much of a jerk Jeonghan could be. 

“No, wait. I’m really sorry. Like really really sorry. I shouldn’t have acted the way I did last time. I’m sorry-”

“Yeah, okay, okay. I got it, you’re sorry and I forgive you. Now, can I leave?”

Seungcheol wants to keep talking to him. He doesn’t want it to end again, he misses his dreams, and he misses Jeonghan, even though the man facing him is completely different from his expectations. 

“I want to get to know you… Is that okay.” 

That’s the thing about Choi Seungcheol - His hunger for good things is insatiable. More so, he doesn’t budge when he wants something, or thinks he wants something, he isn’t sure. People call him stubborn, Seungcheol just calls it optimism. Jeonghan doesn’t look like he agrees with the so called optimism, though. The expression of disgust he’s sporting is almost comical and he puffs out an outraged laugh.

“Wow, the audacity.” 

“Come on, that’s not a bad idea.” Seungcheol tries to argue. “That’s the only way we can tell if we’re actually connected in some sort of-”

“We’re not.” Jeonghan cuts him mid sentence. Seungcheol pays him no mind.

“I’m sure we are connected in some sort of way. Maybe you’re just too light of a sleeper. Or maybe you did something to upset the sandman so you didn’t get your dream. I don’t know but I’m sure we can figure it out!”

“You seem to have forgotten who I am?” Jeonghan points at himself, then back at Seungcheol, “And apparently who you are as well…”

“Give it a chance. I may be a waiter, but you’ll see I’m a pretty charming waiter once you get to know me.” 

He doesn’t know much of this Jeonghan, but one thing Seungcheol knows for sure is that there’s no other alternative to figuring things out than for them to get to know each other. 

Jeonghan has given up on trying to put Seungcheol back in his place at this point. He takes his shopping basket and leaves Seungcheol standing there, alone again. Except Seungcheol is smiling this time and he earns himself a few stares from startled customers when he screams, “if you agree, drop by the restaurant sometime this week!”

**Author's Note:**

> I've been toying with the idea for quite a long time now and i'm kind of writing this in a rush.  
> I reuploaded the chapter after correcting the obvious mistakes... BUT STILL UN-BETA'ED.  
> Also updates might be a little slow on my part since I'm taking a heavy course load this semester... But I'll try my best !
> 
> i remade my twitter so come scream at me [@yoscoups](https://twitter.com/yoscoups)
> 
> (and don't forget, a comment a day keeps the author from starving away !)


End file.
